On Monday, December 22, 2025 at approximately 5:03 p.m. the Appanoose County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a
possible drowning involving a young boy in a pond in the 27000 block of Highway J3T, Moravia, Iowa.
When emergency personnel arrived on scene, it was reported that an eight-year-old boy had been fishing at a farm pond near the family
residence. When the parents went to check on the boy, they were not able to locate the boy but saw a hole in the ice and called 9-1-1.
Emergency personnel were able to locate the unresponsive boy in a hole in the ice approximately 25 yards from the shoreline.
Emergency personnel from the Centerville Fire/Rescue Department were able to utilize ice rescue suits to recover the young boy from the
water approximately forty-two minutes after receiving the call. The boy was transferred to a Des Moines area hospital by Air Ambulance.
It is unknown how long the boy was in the water, but the boy had been fishing near the family pond for approximately forty-five minutes
prior to the 9-1-1 call.
The boy’s condition is unknown at the time of the press release.
Emergency personnel from the Sheriff’s Office; Moravia Fire/Rescue; Centerville Fire/Rescue; Moulton Fire/Rescue; Ottumwa Fire Department; and AirMed Air Ambulance, assisted with the rescue.
